Tool-holder



(No Model.)

G. H. WARREN.

TOOL 1101mm. No. 373,503. Patented Nov. 22, 1887.

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NITED STATES GEORGE H. \VARREN, OF SHELBURNE FALLS, MASSACHUSETTS.

TOOL-HOLDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 373,503, dated November 22, 1887.

Application filed October 8, 1886. Serial No. 215,720.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE H. WARREN, of Shelburne Falls, in the county of Franklin and State of Massachusetts, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Tool- 1IIolders, of which the following is a specificaion.

My invention. relates to tool-holders of that class which is designed for holding a variety of small tools; and the invention consists in the novel construction of the holder and the means for operating the clamping jaws, as hereinafter fully set forth.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of the improved handle; Fig. 2, a top plan view showing the interior of the handle; Fig. 3, a vertical longitudinal central section of the same; Figs. 4, 5, 6, and 7, views illustrating certain details, hereinafter described; and Fig. 8, aview illustrating a slight modification.

The handle or body A may be made round or of any other preferred shape; but I prefer to make it in the form of the handle of a pocket-knife, as represented in Figs. 1 and 2, it being conveniently made of cast metal, with a cavity resembling a box for the reception of the various tools, such as awls, gimlet-points, screwdrivers, &c. One side, B, is made separate, and is pivoted to the body of the handle at one end by a pivot, e, as shown in Fig. 3, so it can be swung around sidewise, as represented in Fig. 2. On this pivot e, I form an eccentrie,f, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, this eccentric and pivot being rigidly secured to the handle or lid B, which thus forms a lever for turning the eccentric f, and also a lid or cover for the box or cavity containing the tools. This lid or lever B is provided on its under sidewith alongitudinal recess, 10, to engage with a corresponding rib or projection, 0, (shown in Figs. 2 and 3,) for holding it in position when closed, italso having, ifdesired, a thumb-piece orprojeetion, (Z, for use in opening or closing it.

The locking devices 0 1) may be omitted, if desired, as it is apparent that when the lid or leveris swung over upon the body A far enough to clamp the tools and the centers of the eccentrio, and the pivot brought in line with each other, the lid or lever will be locked in position.

(No model.)

The free end of the lid 13 and of the shoulder against which it abuts are slightly inclined or beveled, to permit' it to be swung around on its pivot without binding, as shown in Fig. 2.

The nose or front end ofthe handle or body A is provided with a socket or hole for the reception of the clamping-jaws J J. (Shown detached and enlarged in Fig. 6, and in position in Figs. 1, 2, and 8.) This socket or hole is made rectangular or of any other suitable form in cross-section to correspond with the form of the jaws J J, and two of its sides a a are made inclined, as shown in Fig. 8, for the purpose of forcing the jaws together as they are drawn into the socket, though obviously the inclination may be upon the jaws'only.

The jaws J J are preferably made of one piece of metal, as represented in Figs. 3 and 6, with an angular recess, 0, in their adjoining faces to receive the shank of the tools, as is usual in this class of tool-holders. It is, however, obvious that, if preferred, the jaws may be made of two pieces, they being united I prefer to make them as represented in Fig. 6, because they spring apart automatically when released. thus facilitating the insertion of the tool. The jaws thus made are inserted in the socket and connected to the eceentricf by a small rod or link, D, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, this link D having at its rear end a hole, 9, of proper size to fit the eccentricf,and at its opposite end a lateral proj eetion or hook, h, to engage in the'hole i in the rear end of the jaws. When thus constructed and arranged, it will be seen that by simply swinging the lid or lever around, as in Fig. 2, the eccentric fwill operate to force the jaws outward, and that when the tool has its shank inserted between the jaws by swinging the lid or lever B back to the closed position the eccentric will operate to draw the jaws inward, the inclined walls a a forcing them together and causing them to clasp and firmly hold the tool.

It is apparent that in a device of this character if the connectinglink D were rigid and inelastic the lid B could be broughtinto proper closed position onlywhen tools having one and the same sized shank were used. This difficulty is obviated byintroducing into the connection between the eccentric and the jaw or jaws a very strong spring, which allows for some vaby a pivot, so as to open and close freely; but

riation in the size of shanks, and yet brings a powerful pressure on them when the lid is in proper position. For this purpose I have made the link D of elastic metal and curved enough to permit it to spring or yield sufficiently to permit the jaw or jaws to accommodate themselves to any slight differences there may be in the size of shank of the different tools.

It is obvious that the link or connection and the jaws may be made of one piece of metal, thejaws forming or acting as spring-prongs; and it is also apparent that the employment of two jaws is not essential to my invention.

In Fig. 8 I have shown a construction in which only one jaw is employed and that made integral with the link D. In this case one face or wall of the socket acts as a jaw, and it maybe recessed or made with an angular slot, 0, the same as the jaws, to facilitate the proper seating of the tool. The single jaw is of spring metal and has the part connecting it with the eccentric curved, as before described, to 'act as a spring and yield when necessary.

Instead of making the socket in the end of the handle widest at its outer end, this arrangement may be reversed by making the walls a a incline in the opposite direction, the socket then being wider at its inner end. Thejaws being now placed within the socket would be urged together by forcing them bodily outward, this plan being merely a reversal of that illustrated. I When this construction is adopted, it will be found necessary to make the link D rigid, so that when it is moved forward by the eccentric to push the jaws into the socket it will not bend or yield. By this construction I dispense with the screw parts ordinarily used in this class of tool-holders, greatly simplify and cheapen the construction, and at the same time produce a holder that will hold the tool with great firmness. It is'also very compact, can be carried in the pocket the same as a knife, and requires no wrench or separate device for operating it.

This device may obviously be used for holding tools in a bit-brace, one form, of which would be constructed by attaching the ordinary sweep and breast-bearing to the handle of the device shown.

The eccentric may be located at or near the front end of the lid, instead of the rear end, in which case the connecting rod or link would be correspondingly shorter.

I believe myself to be first to provide a toolholder with a spring or yielding connection between the operating-lid and the device for securing the tool in the holder, and this I claim, broadly.

I am aware that it has been proposed to con struct a bit-holder having holding-jaws which are forced together under the influence of a screw sleeve or thimble, with a mechanism for binding the jaws upon the tool-shank still tighter after they have been grasped as fir'mly as is possible by means of the screw sleeve or thimble, and this I disclaim.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- V v 1. In a tool-holder, the combination, with a handle or body having a tapered socket or hole in one end, of a lever, B, pivoted to thehandle, provided with an eccentric, and adapt ed to swinglaterally, ajaw orjaws, J, mounted within the tapered socket, and a yielding link, D, connecting the jaws with the eccentric upon the lever, substantially as shown and described.

2. A tool-holder having its handle or body A provided with a clamping-jaw and with a cavity for the reception of aseries of tools, and a pivoted lid, B, for closing the same, said lid being also provided with a cam or eccentric connected to the clamping jaw or jaws and arranged to operate the same, substantially as shown and described.

3. In combination with handle or body A, having a tapered socket in one end, sliding jaws J J, mounted loosely therein, a laterallyswinging lever, B, pivoted to the handle and provided with an eccentric, f, and a curved yielding connecting-rod, D, all substantially as shown.

4:. In combination with the handle or body A, having a tapered socket, the sliding jaws J J, lever B, provided with an eccentric, f, a fastening device for the lever, and the yielding connectingrod D, constructed and arranged to operate as herein set forth.

5. In combination with handle or body A and a nose having inclined walls a a, clamping devices, comprising jaws J J, placed within the nose, a lid pivoted to the handle and provided with an eccentric, and a bar or link, D, connecting the clamping device with the eccentric.

6. In combination with a handle or body,

A, having a tapering socket in its end, a lid, B, pivoted to the handle and provided with an eccentric, a clampingjaw mounted loosely within the socket, and connected with the eccentric by means of a link, substantially as shown and described.

7. In combination with a handle or body, A, having a socket in one end, a lid, B, pivoted to the handle and provided with an eccentric, a clamping -jaw placed loosely within the socket, and connected with the eccentric by means of a link, the jaw or the socket, or both, being beveled or inclined, substantially as shown and described. 1

8. In combination with handle A, provided with a cavity for the reception of tools and with a rib, c, a laterally-swinging lid, B, pivoted to the handle and provided with a seat or depression, 10, to receive the rib c, and toolholding devices mounted loosely within the handle and connected with the rib, all substantially as shown.

9. In combination with handle or body A, provided with tool-holding devices movable in relation to the handle, and provided also with a cavity for the reception of the tools and with a rib, c, a laterally-swinging lid, B, piv- IIO tion between the lever B and the tool holding or clamping devices.

11. In combination with handle A, toolholding devices mounted loosely Within said handle at one end, a lid, B, pivoted to the other end of the handle, and a connection, substantially such as shown, between the lid and the tool-holding devices.

GEORGE H. WARREN.

Witnesses: O. W. HAWKS,

ELIZA A. RICE. 

